Today we’d like to present a very talented artist specializing in fashion illustration, Julija Lubgane. We talked about inspiration, her dedication to art which brought her across the pond and many more. Read on…

Hi Julia, how are you today? Can you please present yourself to our readers? Where and when did your life as a creative being begin?

My name is Julija Lubgane and I am a fashion
illustrator. My creative journey started back in Latvia when I was about seven
years old. I always saw my dad creating, whether it was drawing, sculpting or
wood crafting. He was the one who is responsible for embedding the craft of art
in me. He would give me drawing lessons and increase the difficulty day by day.
It was not until I found my mom’s sewing fashion magazine that increased my
interest to become a fashion
illustrator. All the designs in those magazines were illustrated by hand, and
I was absolutely mesmerized by the beauty and accuracy of drawing skills. That
was the pivot point when I realized that this is what I want to do, this is who
I want to be.

You’re now based in Chicago. Tell us more about your decision to move from Latvia to United States.

I enrolled into the Art College when I was 15 years
old and graduated with honors with Fashion Design degree. However, I was unable
to find anything suitable in Latvia for my dreams and passion for illustration
so I decided to move to United States. I barely spoke English and had no one in
Chicago to lean on. But nothing was going to stop me to achieve my goal. I
enrolled in The Illinois Institute of Art - Chicago, where I spent the next 5
years studying Fashion Design and Business of Fashion. This school truly
exposed my skills to right people. The Director at the time was very supportive
of my art and provided me with opportunities to display my work in school
events and outside parties. This is exactly how I met my current employer. I
have had the privilege of illustrating fashion apparel for Cintas Corporation
since 2011. I absolutely love my job and am thankful for all the opportunities
that I have had since being a part of the amazing Cintas design team.

I have big ambitions and lots of ideas. Because of
that, outside my daily illustrator job, I illustrate my own fashion art. I have
been doing that for almost 20 years now. I try to practice every chance I get
because I believe that every artist should be a master of their own style. I go
through good days when everything on paper looks just how I imagined, and I
also have those days when nothing goes right. I try really hard to balance it
all – my family, my art and my personal life in order to have an inner
happiness and steadiness.

Besides formal
education, what is the hardest thing you have had to learn as an artist?

The hardest thing that I had to learn is who I am as
an artist and then work extremely hard to polish my unique artistic style. As
an artist, I am my harshest critic. I perfect each piece until I feel it is
worth exposing to the public. I practice a lot and strive for perfection in
lines, shading and color application. I am very sensitive to balance on the
page – it must be perfect! Every line and every shape has its own place - that
is how you make a piece look effortless. Sometimes it takes many tries to
perfect the balance of a drawing on the page, but when it’s right, the
satisfaction is enormous. I also like to try new techniques with my art - as
long as I can stay true to my style and don’t disconnect too far from my
drawing aesthetics.

Your fashion illustration leaves us speechless. It looks like your art and Rebelle were made for each other. 😊 How did you come across Rebelle and what are your thoughts on it?

I really appreciate your compliments. You have no idea how much excitement Rebelle brought into my art when I discovered it. For a very long time I drew in a traditional style – paper, pencil and watercolor. But one day - in 2006 to be exact, I was exposed to Adobe Photoshop and Wacom tablet and everything in my world of art has changed. I embraced digital technology and practiced until results started to show. I was so excited to experience the new possibilities and take my art to the next level. I love the feeling of my Wacom Cintiq 21ux
tablet, it gives me the ability to draw directly on the screen. I can use all sorts of pencils, colors, textures and such. I created some of my own brushes and some were those I found on web. But my goal was always to create something so real digitally that people would be asking if it’s digital or not. This day is already here! So, not long ago I was browsing YouTube in search of tutorials that show the customization of brushes in Photoshop. That is when I saw Rebelle! I was blown away! It was exactly what I was looking for and searching for so long. The brushes, the blending options and the entire software was so groundbreaking to me that I purchased a full version after an 8 minute trial. I absolutely love Rebelle! I think it’s amazing software and absolutely essential for any digital artist whose interest is in watercolor or other mediums. So yes, I do think that Rebelle and my art are made for each other. 😊

Illustration: are you a natural talent or are your skills
laboriously acquired?

I do believe,
because of my dad and his skills, I have what you call “talent”. However,
nothing in this life comes easy, including art. I do believe that you have to
work hard and work a lot in order to achieve your goals and dreams. Like my dad
always said: “Art is 10% talent and 90% work”.

Are you morning bird or night owl? What time of day does your
creative mind work at full throttle?

Oh, I am definitely a morning bird! I love mornings!
I love my coffee in the morning and uninterrupted drawing time. I can wake up
as early as 4 or 5 o’clock in the morning if I have the need to draw. I enjoy seeing
the sun through the big windows in my office that oversee my beautiful back
yard. I was never a night person - even in college! I never stayed up late to
finish anything - everything was completed on time and during the day. I always
joke that my brain shuts down past 6 p.m.

Where can people see and buy your artworks?

I am very active on Instagram @julijalubgane. I post
new art, my work in progress and live videos almost daily. Also, I have my
website www.julijalubgane.com. Two other places that I love to post are Behance and Coroflot. I think these
two sites are amazing for any person who creates. Also, I sell my prints on
Etsy and Amazon. People can see my art all over the web - simply type in my
name and the search results will take you to many different sites.

Another year has passed, another adventure is behind us - thanks to all of you for being a part of it! This year was amazing - new Rebelle version was released in April and our new addition to the software family - Inspirit - was born later. Thanks to everyone for your support! Honestly, we could not ask for more.

From everyone here at Escape Motions we wish you the most beautiful and blessed Christmas season filled with love, happiness and laughter and a Happy New Year 2018! May you spend this wonderful time of the year with your family and loved ones.

Your favourite iOS app for creating mesmerizing mandala and kaleidoscope artworks is released for desktop! Complete with new symmetry mode, custom brushes and high-quality 4K image export, Inspirit now gives you even more possibilities to dive into its vivid colourful patterns on both Windows and macOS.

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Younger brother of Inspirit - Inspirit for iOS - was released back in September and has immediately gained the exposure among artists and mandala lovers. One question was asked many times after the release: “Will there ever be a version for desktop?”. There were so many requests to bring Inspirit to life on a computer, we knew we had to address them. And today it is becoming a reality: from now on, Inspirit is fully compatible with Windows and macOS operating systems. And that’s not all - we’ve also added many new features to make your experience with this Inspirit version as pleasant as possible.

Pricing & availability

Looking for a perfect gift for all creatives? Look no further! Inspirit for desktop is available from today on our website for an introductory price $14.99. The license allows you to use the artworks created with Inspirit for non-commercial as well as for commercial use.

Get social with us!

Join our Inspirit community on Instagram: follow @inspiritapp and use hashtags #inspiritapp and #createdwithinspirit. Feel free to share your feedback on Inspirit with us - report a bug, suggest a feature or show us some love at our email address support[at]escapemotions.com ☺